UNIPATH STAFF
Jordan and the United States have expanded joint efforts to counter the distorted propaganda spewing from Daesh and other violent extremist groups.
An agreement signed in April 2016 by Richard Stengel, the U.S. undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, and Jordan’s ambassador to the U.S., Alia Hatoug Bouran, aims to disrupt the recruitment of foreign fighters and online fundraising by the groups.
“Through the partnership, Jordan and the United States will expand media efforts to rapidly and effectively counter propaganda from Daesh and other violent extremist groups,” according to a statement issued after the agreement’s signing.
The U.S.-Jordan partnership “will focus on presenting independent voices from Jordan and across the region that will amplify moderate and constructive narratives and a positive and peaceful vision of the future,” the statement said.
Mohammad Momani, Jordan’s minister of state for media affairs and communications, said the agreement is part of Jordan’s overall strategy to defeat terrorism.
Fighting Daesh needs to be addressed militarily and ideologically, Momani said, adding that Jordan has a long-term ideological approach that aims to counter terrorism and promote moderation.
“Few Jordanians have been radicalized, and the country deals with them using different ideological tools,” the minister noted.
Jordan and the U.S. are also cooperating militarily in fighting Daesh because the kingdom is a member of an international coalition directed against the extremist group.
Sources: The Jordan Times. U.S. State Department